Top News:
Axios:
Email: the White House orders the GSA to terminate “every single media contract” expensed by the agency and all contracts for Politico, BBC, E&E, and Bloomberg — - The discovery, made through a U.S. government spending database that has long been publicly available …
Discussion:
Fortune, The Dispatch, New York Post, @nytimespr, @marcacaputo, @liz_wheeler, @asymmetricinfo, @doge, @brianstelter, @mjnblack, @firstadopter, CBS News, RedState, @kagrox.bsky.social, @barbarasobel.bsky.social, @hallijayne.bsky.social, @lawrencehurley.bsky.social, Mediaite, The Post Millennial, @apbioonly, @nkLottery@shakedown.social and The Gateway Pundit, more at Techmeme »
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Politico:
Politico's EIC and CEO say the company has never received any government funding, and agencies that subscribe to Politico Pro do so through standard processes — POLITICO has been the subject of debate on X this week. Some of it has been misinformed, and some of it has been flat-out false.
Discussion:
Rolling Stone, New York Times, @brianstelter, The Daily Wire, Twitchy, PolitiFact, @natsfert, @adamwren, @ewerickson, @bresreports, @stevenoverly, @zachary, @jimgeraghty, Associated Press, @politico, @zachschermele, @joanwalsh, @w7voa.journa.host.ap.brid.gy, Beth Diaz on LinkedIn, CNN, HotAir, @timbays.bsky.social, @suellentrop.bsky.social, The Post Millennial, The Hill, MeidasTouch News, Fox News and Axios
Isabella Kwai / New York Times:
Trump amplifies a conspiracy theory that “billions” in USAID and other agencies' funds were stolen to pay Politico and others for positive coverage of Democrats — President Trump spread unfounded claims that the government had paid Politico and other news media outlets for positive coverage of Democrats.
Discussion:
CNN, @realDonaldTrump …, @rubinreport, Townhall, @armanddoma, @billackman, @elonmusk, @cabot_phillips, @jason, @mehdirhasan, @billybinion, @lhfang, @krassenstein, @nancyscola, @elonmusk, @ryangrim, @ike_saul, @rikkiratliff, @mtaibbi, @jeremymbarr, Raw Story, @peterschiff, @armanddoma, RedState, Washington Post, Breitbart, DNyuz, Daily Kos, @brianstelter, @sanleekelly.bsky.social, Hollywood Life, Blaze Media, The Wrap, The Guardian, New Jersey Online, @cheetah.bsky.social, @parkermolloy.com, OpenTheBooks, The Independent, @stuartathompson.bsky.social, @stuartathompson.bsky.social, Althouse, @willsommer.bsky.social, Newser, freebeacon.com and Digby's Hullabaloo
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Amazon reports Q4 ad revenue up 18% YoY to $17.29B, vs. $17.4B est., and subscription services revenue up 10% YoY to $11.51B — Overall earnings for the period smashed Wall Street expectations. — However, the Q4 ad revenue figure fell short of analyst expectations of $17.4 billion, per StreetAccount.
Matthew Kassel / Jewish Insider:
Sources: CNN's contract to expand in Qatar includes Qatar compensating CNN several million dollars a year; CNN: editorial content is “entirely independent” — The financial arrangement raises concerns about the network's ability to report freely on the Gulf state and the region
David Folkenflik / NPR:
A look at Trump's assault on CBS, and more broadly, how he and allies seek to pressure the media to punish it and to inhibit its ability to check the president — The television news magazine 60 Minutes — the most storied and profitable show in the history of CBS News …
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Brian Steinberg / Variety:
Trump calls on CBS to “terminate” 60 Minutes, and says “CBS should lose its license”, amid his $10B lawsuit against CBS over the Kamala Harris interview
Discussion:
The Guardian, American Thinker, The Wrap, @mherskovitz, Status, RADIO ONLINE, @aidnmclaughlin, New York Post, Daily Caller News Foundation, @realDonaldTrump …, Megyn Kelly, TVNewsCheck, Louder With Crowder, Boing Boing, RedState, Twitchy, Mediaite, Reason, @mergerson.bsky.social, The Daily Beast, Blaze Media, Daily Mail, @robowentv.bsky.social, New Republic, @willharrisinva.bsky.social, Fox News, Townhall, Grabien, Axios, DNyuz, The Daily Wire, freebeacon.com, Washington Examiner, Associated Press, Los Angeles Times, The Hollywood Reporter and The Gateway Pundit
Sean Burch / The Wrap:
Meta hires Henry Rodgers, chief national correspondent at The Daily Caller, to help the company shape its public policy; Rodgers has covered Trump closely — Mark Zuckerberg has hired Henry Rodgers to help the company shape its “public policy” — Meta has hired Henry Rodgers …
Discussion:
@henryrodgersdc, BGR, @mikeisaac, Bloomberg and TechCrunch, more at Techmeme »
Christopher Palmeri / Bloomberg:
A California state court issues a temporary restraining order stopping Sony from taking Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune distribution rights away from CBS — “The court's order has no bearing on, and is not indicative of, the eventual outcome of the ongoing litigation,” Sony said Thursday in a statement …
Discussion:
Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Screen Rant, Cord Cutters News, Los Angeles Times, TVNewsCheck, The Wrap and Deadline
Charlotte Tobitt / Press Gazette:
News Corp says The Sun's global online audience fell from 143M monthly unique users in Dec. 2023 to 70M in Dec. 2024; NY Post fell 27% YoY to 90M in Dec. 2024 — Sun global website traffic has halved in the space of a year. — News Corp estimates that The Sun's global online audience more than halved in a year to the end of 2024.
Discussion:
@adavid@aus.social and Reuters
RELATED:
Charlotte Tobitt / Press Gazette:
Le Monde ends 2024 with 660K subscribers, of which 580K were digital, and expects digital subscriber revenue to cover editorial staff costs within two years — Digital subscriber revenue is expected to cover the costs of Le Monde's entire editorial staff within the next two years, according to chief executive Louis Dreyfus.
Discussion:
Charlotte Tobitt on LinkedIn, @pressgazette.co.uk and @polemicdigital.com
Financial Times:
Leaders in Russia, Hungary, and more applaud USAID's funding freeze affecting independent news outlets; the 2025 US foreign aid budget included $268M for media — Independent outlets in former Soviet Union are poised to be hurt by temporary shut down at key US agency
Mia Sato / The Verge:
StackCommerce, an online shopping platform creating affiliate marketing content, acquired Reviewed from Gannett on December 1 after its shutdown in August 2024 — Now, it's back from the dead under a new owner. … Now, it's back from the dead under a new owner.
Discussion:
The Information, @miasato.bsky.social and @chillburg.bsky.social
Rachel Aiello / CTV News:
The Canadian government will let its agencies advertise on Meta platforms; it imposed a ban in 2023 after Meta pulled Canadian news from its platforms — OTTAWA — The Canadian government has ended its ban on advertising on Meta platforms and allocated up to $100,000 for a campaign to promote the GST rebate, CTV News has learned.
Mark Sweney / The Guardian:
The British Film Institute: UK broadcasters slashed their spending on high-end TV shows to the lowest level since 2015, while US streamers increased spending — Channel 4, Channel 5 and Sky also among UK broadcasters making cuts as Netflix, Disney and Amazon pile on pressure
Discussion:
@philralph.bsky.social, @debbiemoon.bsky.social, WORLD SCREEN and Deadline
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